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Thursday, June 29, 2006

Convert or die

The dominionistdispensationalist video game Left Behind: Eternal Forces is due for release this fall. In advance of the release, conservative Christian leaders have been asked to protest the release of the game as an unholy unchristian hate fest. The premise of the soon-to-be-released video game is for non-Christians of every ilk to convert to Christianity or die at the hands of Christian warriors in a post-rapture New York. Christian warriors run the streets of New York’s China Town, Soho, and other marquee neighborhoods, killing Atheists, Jews, and Muslims (and maybe even Catholics) unless they convert to fundamentalist Christianity.

In the War on Terror we have the word Islamist used to describe adherents of extremist Islam. Left Behind: Eternal Forces seems to be grooming the next generation of young Christianists. Who will be the target of their terror campaign? Any guesses?

7 comments:

brad
said...

Just a few theological notes:1. The guys who wrote "left behind" are dispensationalist. Dispensationalists believe only in a positional salvation during this dispensation such beliefs are the farthest thing from the more theocratic types. 2. Dominionists are hyper-reformed (usually orthodox presbetyrian or OPC). This is the farthest thing from Dispensationalist as possible. These folks believe the complete opposite of the dispensationalists in that they are post-millenial and believe that the Lordship of Jesus Christ is over every sphere of life including politics and governement. The dominionists being post-millenial do not believe in the rapture.

Dominionists as in Dominion Theology number truly in probably the 100s. I have never met one. So to link the left behind types with dominionist type is well - silly. It would be like linking libertarians with Marxists. They are actually the opposite. That is why to think American Evangelicals are somehow theocratic is like saying libertarians are into state run media. It is just a strange claim to make.

Oh I re-read that and though I would explain a term. Almost all American evangelicals are pre-millenial. A pre-millenial means that Christ return happens prior to Christ's rule in government. Christ must return before any theocratic kingdom is established. A post millenial person, which was really only present in the late 1800s believe in Christ's return after the church sets up a theocratic kingdom. I have never met a Christian who is post-millenial. In other words, theocraic beliefs are considered heresy in American Evangelicalism. Your fear of theocratic intentions is just ignorant of clear teachings of American Evangelicals. Basic historic beliefs in the church is that theocratic applications of the Lordship of Jesus Christ are not in God's program during this dispensation.

Your position namely that people are going to learn to kill people from a video game about some end-times battle of good and evil is really really, what is the word you use - nutball. Your view of some Christian army in America conspiring to kill people is fantastic. Name the last road side bomb...or the last act of violence by some organized denomination in the US. You do admit that most Christians are involved in denominations or churches. So where is the violence and the big conspiracy to take over...oh, it will come from a video game that is still in production and doesn't have any corporate sponsers or capital backers yet.

So I am denying the imminent violence??? Sir, this topic betrays your willingness to believe the worst about Christians and this perspective is not rational.

Read the post Brad - my position is your position. Or more accurately, as you have been telling me for years, most Christians are good people. Only a fringe act in ways that I would find crazy. Your fellow pastors are calling for the nutball fringe to boycott the game because it teaches that it is ok to kill non-christians. so where am I off? Where am I crazy? The Christians who you have been telling me for years are good are calling the bad Christians to account.

Instead, you attack me. Because you know that I find the bad Christians to be a potential threat to my peace and well being. Great, just fucking great. Why do I even bother?

We'll talk ...but if you go to the web site it is obviously some guys are trying to make a buck off of some video game and you anyone to make a big social point like 'these guys are nutballs' is silly...it is a video game about good and evil like star wars or the Lord of the Rings...To think people are actually advocating killing people is the silly part...Sorry to flame you so much...but the pastors that are making some deal are a tad over sensitive too...All these Christian books and video games are just "Jesus Junk"- people trying to make entertainment bucks from the family values crowd. Video games are always or usually about winners and losers and therefore usually about killing people and blowing things up. The only point of trying to make a "Christian" video game is just poor taste nothing more. I may be a bit moody in my flames sorry.